The Chestnut Tale
by Fiery Koneko
Summary: It's been two weeks after the Cell Games and Krillin still can't get 18 out of his mind. His tedious life takes a twist when said android appears at the shore of Kame House, deadly injured. This story reflects my guesses of how these two got together.
1. Chapter 1

_**The Chestnut Tale**_

_For those who've seen my profile, it's been quite a while. But I finally decided to sit back and write again. I know I still have some unfinished fanfics, I have to work on them eventually. Right now I'm gonna focus on this one. I've always been a big K/18 fan and always wondered how they got together. I've been wanting to write this since years ago, but somehow managed until now. I'm not sure what other stories are out there, but I never read any in the hope to keep mine original_

_This story is based on several theories I've had. Enjoy ;). It starts with about two weeks after the Cell games._

_A/N: Italics are thoughts while normal font is speech. _

_A/N 2: The title refers to the fact Marron (Krillin and 18's daughter's name is translated as chestnut, and if I'm not mistaken, so is Krillin's name as well)_

_DISCLAIMER: I do not own anything of Dragonball Z, it all belongs to the genius Akira Toriyama_

_**Chapter one:**_

'Aaargh!!' In pure frustration Vegeta pounded his fist in the ground, after having fallen to his knees in exhaustion for the hundredth time.

'_Why, Kakarot, why dammit?!' _

W_hy_ did that dumbass Kakarot put his life at stake? It was beyond his understanding. Why on earth would Kakarot do something as reckless and foolish, knowing well how possible he could fail? How could no other than that low class Sayan's son beat the all powerful android Cell while he, Vegeta, _prince _of the Sayans, had been unable to as much as lay a scratch on him?

Even Vegeta was unsure of which of the two issues frustrated him the most. All the time he spent on Earth was to train himself, to one day beat him, Kakarot, and prove once and for all that he, Vegeta, was superior.

But with Kakarot gone, his purpose of beating him was gone as well, leaving the prince of Sayans slightly confused about what he was to do now. And on top of that, Kakarot wasn't even the strongest. His own kid had surpassed him.

And if that wasn't enough, his training wasn't paying off; two weeks had passed since Cell's destruction and he was no closer of reaching the Super Sayan 2 stage than as he was at the beginning.

More frustrated than ever, he decided to go home, the sun was setting and the last thing he wanted was to hear that woman scold him, again. She was already pissed at him accidentally destroying the gravitational chamber anyway, reason why he was training in the middle of nowhere.

As he begun flying on his way, he noticed someone flying towards him. Him not being able to recognize the person by his or her Ki, made him even angrier.

Android 18 sighed. Another day had passed and no trail of her brother. She had heard from them that he was alive, there could be no mistake. Tired, annoyed and angry of flying around, she decided to find a resting place. She was about to land when she noticed someone flying towards her.

'…_17? No, it can't be; his hair isn't like that…'_

As she flew towards it to get a closer look, she realized who it was. There was no way to avoid him, he had already seen her. Not that she wanted to, anyway. She wasn't afraid of him, after all she had already giving him quite a beating once. Smirking slightly at that memory, she approached the irritated Sayan. He was the first one to speak.

'My, my, still alive then? What is an android like you flying around here? These are MY training grounds.'

She quirked and eyebrow at this and smirked. She wasn't going to allow him to intimidate her. 'YOUR training grounds? So you're training now, it was to expect, after that monster wiped the floor with you.'

'I wouldn't talk if I were you, after all, I wasn't that useless waste that monster spat out', he answered, smirking equally.

Her smirk never faded. 'If that makes me a useless waste, what would that make _you_ considering the fact that I could've killed you, hadn't it been for your son saving your sorry behind?'

Vegeta's smirk turned into an ugly scowl. No way was he going to allow a low level android insult him like that. He still felt ashamed over the fact she had once given him a massive beating. He was not going to allow her to get away with it.

'I'd watch my mouth if I were you, android', he growled. 'There is no baldy weakling to stop me from destroying you this time.'

Her smirk faded as well. It wasn't like she needed any more reminding of the bald little man in question. She had enough of a hard time trying to push him out of her thoughts. Deciding this was enough she turned to leave, but not without shooting him her last words.

'I wasted more than enough time on you. Instead of seeking fights with old rivals you might as well seek a fight with the kid who, according to what I've heard, out powered you by far. And…' she looked over her shoulder to smirk at him '…he isn't even half your age, is he?'

She struck a nerve, and she knew it. It was an unnecessary risk, but she was as pissed and annoyed as he was, and not planning to allow him to win this verbal battle. She flew off completely turning her back to him, which was a big mistake.

'Aargh!' Wincing in pain, she felt the powerful Ki blast explode in her back. Barely being able to maintain herself in the air, she turned, only to see Vegeta's face contorted in rage.

'If you think that I'm going to let a lowlife android get away with this, you're wrong!' he breathed. 'Today, you messed with the wrong person!'

He flew towards her with barely visible speed, and punched her in the gut. She felt all the air being punched out of her as she flew backwards. He seemed to have reappeared behind her because she felt a hard hit on the upper part of her back, which sent her towards the ocean. As she still tried to locate his position, a yellow blast came crashing into her. She plunged into the ocean, barely being able to move or breathe. In her last strength she managed to get hold of a floating piece of wood.

He was about to give her the final blast, when suddenly Bulma's image popped into his mind. She would be annoyed at him killing an android. The baldy was her friend, after all. His gravitational chamber was at risk. She was already hurt pretty badly; he wouldn't be surprised if she died.

'You're in luck, android. I would thank Baldy for that', he said before flying off.

Everything was fading. With her last strength she lifter her head, and saw far away a small island with a little house on it. If she only managed to reach it…

'_Damn it all' _she thought. The image of Krillin suddenly jumped through her mind.

'_And why do I keep thinking of him? He was only kind to go out with me or something; I'm just another pretty face to him.' _She gritted her teeth at the fact a part of her was contradicting this.But before any further thoughts, everything went black.

Little did she know on that very island, the person haunting her mind was staring at the sunset, deeply emerged in thoughts…

_­­_

_Next chapter preview: _

_Being unable to sleep, Krillin stares out of his window, wishing on a falling star. But this time, he ends up getting much more then he wished for…_


	2. Chapter 2

_**Chapter two:**_

'Hey guys! It's been a while, I'm sorry!'

'Gohan, what a surprise!' Master Roshi exclaimed as the young Sayan landed gracefully on the island.

'Hi Gohan, long time no see!' Bulma said with a smile, waving from her beach chair with little Trunks in her arms.

Gohan grinned apologetically.

'I'm sorry I haven't been able to visit. Mum really gives me loads of homework and stuff. She wants me to focus on my education. Ever since she's pregnant she's been kinda…' his voice trailed of, not sure of how to describe his mother's sudden sensitivity.

Master Roshi blinked confused but Bulma smiled.

'Don't worry about it, I understand exactly what you mean, Gohan. Right now it's best not to upset your mum.'

'Yeah, will do' he smiled. 'Uhm, by the way, where's Krillin?'

'He is…' she pointed to the back of the house. 'He's been there since this morning. Ever since, you know, he's hasn't been really himself. He's more serious and quiet these days, almost sulky. We've all tried to cheer him up but no use. You should go and talk to him'

Krillin sighed and threw a small pebble into the ocean in front of him. Again, for the millionth time the memory played through his mind.

_For a moment, he thought all was lost. He thought her gone. But when he looked up, she was still standing there, her back to him. She turned slowly, hair blond hair in the wind, her eyes as blue as the sky. He felt himself unable to speak or to move as long as those eyes were locked on his. _

_It was an awkward moment, and he felt he'd never be able to speak again. '…I'll see you later'. After that she ran of, jumping of the tower and flying off. _

He sighed again. It's been two weeks and he couldn't get her out of his mind. Of course he knew when she said 'see you later', she didn't really mean it, but it didn't stop him from staring at the ocean, hoping somehow she'd show up.

'_I'm so hopeless' _he thought.

'Hi Krillin!' The young Sayan seemed to appear out of nowhere, giving Krillin the fright of his life

'Go-Gohan, what are you doing here?'' he gasped.

'Eer sorry to scare you, Krillin, I was just dropping by to visit,' the young Sayan replied, smiling apologetically. 'Bulma told me you were sitting here all by yourself…is everything ok?'

'Well yeah…I guess', Krillin replied staring at his feet. But this seemed very unconvincing as Gohan walked over and went to sit next to him on the sand.

'I think I miss Goku, that's all. I keep on remembering how we used to train together when we were kids, he's pretty much the brother I never had', Krillin started. 'That's why I've been a little down lately, that's all.'

'I miss dad a lot too, but he seemed happy to be able to train in the Other Realm. I'm sure we'll see him again',

Krillin smiled. 'We sure will'.

Gohan smiled back but then became slightly more serious. 'But Krillin, are you sure that's all?'

'O-of course it is, I-I mean what else could there be?' Krillin stammered with a nervous laugh and an equally nervous hand gesture.

'Oh I get it, it's 18 isn't it?' Gohan said silently.

'W-what?! W-why would you say that?' Krillin stuttered.

Gohan grinned. 'Krillin, you're a bad liar. And I know you like 18 a lot, I could really tell back there.'

'Loud and clear.' Krillin muttered annoyed, remembering Gohan's outburst at Kami's Temple.

'But I guess I can't lie to you, so yeah, you're right.' He sighed. 'I just don't know what's wrong with me, I can't stop thinking about her or stop hoping she'd somehow appear.' He stared at his feet. 'I know it's pathetic, but that's how it is.'

'I don't think that's pathetic', Gohan said, patting Krillin on his back. 'She did say "see you later", so that was something.'

'Yeah, she did', Krillin said, looking slightly more cheerful.

'Also...', Gohan continued, 'I think 18 does like you a bit, or appreciate what you did for her. She just needs some time to recover from everything, that's all. But I do know you guys will meet eventually and she will be nicer to you. It's just a question of time.'

Krillin blinked surprise at the boy in front of him. It was hard to believe this was the same naïve, oblivious kid he knew. 'Wow Gohan, where did you get all that? I guess you're right,' he stammered, unable to think what else to say.

'_I guess I was wrong about him after all, he's much wiser then I thought.'_

Gohan grinned. 'I guess watching so many soap series with mum does pay off, I don't really get what I just said', he said, scratching the back of his head.

Krillin sighed. So far, so good. He should've known.

'Thanks anyway though, Gohan. I feel much better now.' He said with a smile. It was amazing how that Gohan could cheer him up, when a while ago he thought nothing on earth could make him feel livelier. He wasn't surprised though, Goku himself was just the same.

'No problem, that's what friends are for' Gohan answered happily. 'I gotta go though, or mum'll be angry.'

'Hehe yeah, tell her I said hi' Krillin grinned.

'Sure will, see ya around!' he said as he took off, pausing a bit to wave at Master Roshi and Bulma, and then disappeared in the sky.

It was night. Krillin was staring out of his window, unable to sleep. Even though Gohan had cheered him up, he still couldn't quite shake 18 out of her thoughts. As he looked at the sky, he sighed. It was definitely a sight to behold; despite the cloudy skies, there were some patches where the stars were perfectly visible. Suddenly, he saw a flash throughout the starry patches. A wishing star?

'_I wish I could meet 18, at least one more time' _he thought with his eyes closed. There was an eerie silence for a moment, almost magical. Krillin poked his head out of the window, almost believing completely that 18 would magically appear right there, in front of his window…BABOOM! The thunderous sound was immediately followed by heavy rain, pouring all over Krillin's expecting face.

He groaned, pulling his head back inside and shut the window quickly. He felt relieve nobody had seen him, he realised now how foolish it was to wish something like that.

It was still raining, even after he washed his face, brushed his teeth and got into his pyjamas. He gave his window one more glance, looking at the waves, who violently hit the shore. He sighed and looked at the clock hanging above the window. It was already past midnight. Something made him look through the window again, and his eyes widened as he saw something washed up on the shore. Pressing his nose now to the window, he could make out a human figure.

Without thinking it twice, he rushed downstairs, grabbed his raincoat that was luckily hanging in sight, and opened the door, running towards the stranded figure. His eyes widened as he could distinguish the identity of the female figure in the dim lamplight of the house. Whether it was a dream or reality his eyes never lied; Android 18 was indeed lying unconscious on the beach shore.

_Next chapter preview: _

_Discovering __that 18 is deadly injured, Krillin turns to the only person capable of helping him. But just how well is she able to help the fatally damaged android?_


	3. Chapter 3

_Quick note: __Behold, yet another chapter Well, enjoy . I've been reading the reviews and I wanted to thank everyone for the compliments, it means a lot. Krillin Fan: thanks for the additional info upon the name. Everyone else: thanks a lot too ___

_**Chapter 3**__**:**_

'…18!!'

She was bleeding heavily, her side being stained in a crimson red. The back of her head was bleeding too, and she seemed to be bruised all over. Krillin stood there for a few seconds in shock; who would do such a thing? He snapped back to reality, knowing that on that very moment, there was only one person who could save her.

Bulma turned in her sleep, smiling slightly. Trunks had finally quieted down, and she had finally the chance to sleep a bit. This was rare, as her nights were always hectic, trying to make Trunks fall asleep. Vegeta was no help either, her asking him always ended up in a shouting match, which did not help Trunks calm down at all. She found it incredible how someone like her or her father were having trouble inventing something to make the little half Sayan fall asleep. Sleeping pills was out of the option, although Vegeta had suggested this more then once, and her own father had carefully hinted this on an occasion. But now, somehow, he had quiet down and she was finally getting a nice, long ——RIIING

Almost immediately, Trunks started crying again. Bulma groaned, cursing the fool who would dare to call at those hours. RIING! 'Goddamn woman, get the phone already!' Vegeta growled over Trunks wailing noises.

'I would already if I knew Trunks is being taken care of', she snapped back and got up to answer the phone. Her preference over the phone was mostly because she wanted to know who the idiot was who caused her to have yet another sleepless night.

'Hello?' she said rather annoyed.

'Er, Bulma? It's me, Krillin!' the other side answered.

'Krillin, have you got ANY idea what time it is?!' Bulma growled.

'Yeah, I know, sorry about that. But this is urgent. I need you to come over right away.'

'What is possibly so urgent that it can't wait until tomorrow?' Bulma's voice sounded dangerously low.

'I'm sorry Bulma, but if you knew, you'd agree it was the right thing to do. I don't really know how to explain this but…'

'Please Krillin, speak up', the blue haired woman snapped.

He took a deep breath. '18 has stranded her and is very injured. I have no idea what to do, please Bulma, I need your help.'

'Then why didn't you say so?! This IS very urgent! Ok, I'll get dressed and come over as soon as I can. Meanwhile follow my instructions. The first thing you have to do is to check her pulse and her breathing. It's possible she swallowed water….'

He never knew the longest moment of his life was the small period in which Bulma was with 18 in the sitting room, performing an emergency operation. Even though he insisted, she said he'd better wait outside. 'It's the best you can do; I'll call you if anything comes up.'

The door opened, and Bulma emerged from the room, visibly tired and with a serious expression on her face. Krillin jumped out of his chair immediately and ran towards her.

'Is she all right?' was the only thing he managed to blurt out.

'Well, I…' Bulma started, for the first time at a loss for words. 'She's alive' she added quickly, at the sight of Krillin's horrified expression.

'But during the operation I kinda had to modify some things.'

'Modify? Like what?!' Krillin stammered.

'Remember androids have unlimited power? You guys kept on saying they have no "ki" or something, right? Well, actually they do have some kind of a constant power field surrounding them. It's unlike you guys, who can control your power intensity. Said force field is something unconscious, they don't control it willingly. But since 18 is seriously damaged, I had to temporarily block her "power source" since it can backfire now and cause her body even more damaged, since it's not strong enough to resist that force field energy. But as she recovers, she'll start gaining her powers back, not to worry about that.'

Krillin seemed at a loss of words. '…So, that means she can't blast things, or fly or anything unless she's fully recovered?'

'Exactly', Bulma answered. 'She won't return to her full strength immediately though. This process will take a few weeks.'

'A…a few weeks? B-but…' he stammered. He personally didn't mind much, but he had the feeling 18 would be very pissed off by hearing this. He still found her a bit intimidating even if she has lost her powers.

'But what, Krillin? You're not gonna tell me you don't dare to break the news to her?'

'Can't you do it instead? Bulma, please…' As much as he liked 18, he couldn't bring himself to tell her. His particular fear was that she suspected him of lying, since she already knew he liked her.

'Krillin, you don't expect me to stay here till morning, do you?'

'Well, I…no, of course not' Krillin answered defeated, the sudden relieve he was feeling was now replaced for fear nervousness, knowing he had to face 18 on his own.

'Also,…' Bulma continued, 'I think you need to know that during the operation, I discovered a highly advanced chip in her head. It seems like it was trying to withhold 18's memories. It's damaged now, so it's possible 18 might start remembering random stuff about her life before she became an android. I'm telling you this so you know, because I think you're going to be the one who will help her the most.'

'I…I…' was the only thing the bald monk was able to stammer. 'Can…can I see her?'

'Of course, I've changed her clothes into some piyamas I found in the closet. I'll put her clothes in the dryer in a moment'

He slowly walked into the room. She was soundly asleep, a band aid on her cheek and a bandage over her forehead. One of her arms was dangling outside the bed. He walked up to her nervously and gently grabbed her hand. It felt amazingly warm.

'_I'll take good care of you, 18, I promise'__, _he thought, as he slowly put her hand on the bed again.

Bulma smiled, having seen what Krillin just did. She had just finished putting the clothes in the dryer, and she was standing in front of the door, not wanting to intrude.

'Eer…Krillin, I'm going now. You better go to sleep too, don't worry; she won't wake up till next morning. Remember to wake up early to tell Master Roshi and Olong about her, before they freak out or anything.'

He followed her till the door. 'Bulma, thanks for everything. I...I don't know how I can thank you enough..'

She smiled wearily. 'That's what super genius friends are for, take good care of her, I'll call tomorrow to see how it's going'. She took a small pill out of her pocket and threw it on the ground. The little pill became a jet with a small bang.

'Take care!' She waved and took off.

Krillin sighed as he waved at the jet disappearing in the distance. Tomorrow was going to be one heck of a day.

_Next chapter preview:_

_Soon Krillin finds__ himself facing a dead scared but still rather perverted Master Roshi, an even more fearful Olong and a very pissed of android, all in the early hours of the morning. Can he face his fears and put Kame House in harmony again?_


	4. Chapter 4

_Quick note:__ Phew, finally another chapter. It's been a while since my last update, for which I, again, apologize. I was convinced that for this fanfiction I was able to update at least every week, but it didn't happen. I had the entire chapter plan on my memory stick, but it got infected with many viruses and had to be reprogrammed. T_T So far, so good. But anyway, I'll try and update more, making use of my vacations now. Ok, enough rambling, let's get on with the story. _

_**Chapter 4**_

_Where was she? She was sitting on grass of what looked like a park._

"_Heeey! Sis, are you coming?!" A black-haired boy was waving at her, sitting on a bicycle. _

_Blinking confused she tried to stand up, only to realize she was wearing roller skates. Trying to maintain her balance, she made her way to him. "You should wait up, baka, I'm not used to being on roller skates. I usually get to go with the bike, remember?"_

_He grinned at her. "Oh yeah, I forgot you suck at skating."_

"_I do not suck, I just…need to get used to it, that's all", she replied frowning. "Besides, I'm the older sister so I need to take care of you, so don't go wandering off on your own..."_

"_What older sister? We're twins!" he exclaimed raising and eyebrow._

"_Yeah, but I'm three whole minutes older then you anyway."_

"_Gah, you can't even keep your balance while skating. I bet you can't even beat me in a race."_

"_Oh?" She raised an eyebrow. "Wanna bet on that?"_

_He smirked. "You'll regret that." _

_It was a bad idea indeed. As soon as they took off, she tripped on a stone and landed with a thud on the ground. She clutched her knee trying her best not to cry; it was really badly scraped. _

_She heard him but his bike against a tree and walk back to her with a sigh. "I told you you'd regret it. Let me see that, can you stand?" _

_She sighed and tried to stand, but the pain was too much. Biting her lip she slumped back on the ground. As she looked up, he was smirking at her. _

"_Who's the reckless one now?" he asked amused as he stretched his hand to help her up. "We better go back home, common, I'll give you a piggyback ride. But you have to remove those skates first."_

_As they made their way back home so felt a bit moody. It was embarrassing; really, she should've been the one carrying HIM and not the other way around. He was always doing those reckless stunts and dangerous stuff. _

"_You should ask mum to buy you some knee-protectors," he said suddenly. _

"_You know well why I can't ask her. We're having money problems, remember? I heard mum and dad arguing over it the other night," she answered thoughtfully._

"_How can you be sure? If it was serious they'd surely told us, right?" _

"_No, they wouldn't. They'd keep quiet for us not to worry." She may be only 9 years old, but she wasn't stupid. She knew there was something wrong, very wrong. _

_They were arriving at the house now. A red car was parked in the garage and a strange black car parked outside. "Hey, dad's here!" he exclaimed. _

"_And who's car is that?" she asked frowning. She had a bad feeling about this._

_He merely shrugged. "I don't know. But let's go and greet dad. He's never early!"_

_They found their father sitting in the living room with his back to them, talking in a hushed tone with an older man wearing a white lab coat. He looked up as soon as they entered the room, giving them an interested look. _

"_So those are the kids?" he asked. _

"_Oh yeah. Kids, come here, there's someone I'd like you to meet," he said gesturing them to come closer. "This is Doctor Maki Gero, from work. He's here to talk…er, some work related things." _

_Slowly, her brother put her down. "Can you walk now?" he whispered. The pain was gone and her knee reasonably healed now. _

"_Yeah, don't worry." She was whispering too, for some strange reason. The atmosphere in the room felt odd, very tense. She felt very scared; scared of feeling her father wasn't exactly telling the truth. Scared of the man in front of her, scared of the greedy way he was looking at them. Scared of her mother's sudden absence, as she was always home. _

"_That knee of yours, it looked as if you scraped it really bad. What did you put on it for it to heal so fast?" the doctor asked suddenly. He took a few steps towards her but she instinctively hid behind her brother._

"_N-nothing, it just healed like that," she stammered. Yes, their mother had always told them they were able to heal faster then normal. They were just born that way. _

"_Dad, w-where's mum?" She asked, doing her best not to look afraid. _

"_Oh, she went to do some shopping. She deserves to buy herself something nice," her father answered with a stiff smile. _

_That tone…and weren't they supposed to have money problems? _

"_Why don't you and your brother go play upstairs, and we finish talking?" _

"_Common," her brother whispered to her, taking her hand and rushing upstairs. He, too, seemed to be scared._

18 opened her eyes. Everything was blurry, where was she? She could hear the waves in the background and the salty smell hinted she was still somewhere close to the sea. But right it wasn't the most important thing on her mind. That dream…how strange. But it couldn't be real, could it? She was an android, and so was her brother. They were _made_, not _born._ They couldn't have had a childhood, nor parents.

But where was she? She tried to sit up straighter but a sharp pain shot trough her head and waist. She could feel her whole waist and a part of her back had been bandaged. She was surprised to see she was wearing a pair of oversized green pajamas. Where were her clothes? Her eyes widened by another realization. For her to be wearing something else, someone must have undressed her…

"But where the hell am I?!" she muttered to herself. Looking around her she saw a small room, on the wall was a picture of a young Goku arm in arm with another kid. Upon closer inspection she realized it was Krillin. She knew Goku used to live with his wife and kid and not close to the sea, so the house she was currently in was… No way. Now she was definitely going to kill Vegeta.

_____

Oolong opened an eye and checked the time. Perfect, it was still very early. Next to him, Master Roshi was still snoring. He smirked slightly to himself and slid out of the room quietly. Every month ever since the old man had subscribed, they got the newest issue of the magazine they enjoyed so much. Since they lived on an island, they usually got the magazine in the mail overnight. And as usual, Master Roshi would hide said magazine, to prevent anyone but him to read it first. He was the one who paid the subscription, after all, and he thought there was nothing better then to read his magazine during breakfast of the next day.

But yesterday night he had seen with his own little eyes the hiding place of the magazine. He silently proceeded to open the door of the guest room, and sneaked inside. Opening the closet, he quickly removed some shoes and there it was. His smile becoming only wider, he grabbed the magazine and turned around…

Krillin opened an eye and looked at the time. It was still early. Surely everyone was still asleep. He could sleep a bit more before Oolong and Master Roshi would wake up. Then he could explain everything to them, God would know how he'd do that. But not now, he still had a bit of time to-

"AAAAAH!! A-A-AAANDROOOID! WH-WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?"

"DON'T YOU DARE RUN AWAY OR I'LL BLAST YOUR HEAD OFF! TELL ME WHAT THE HELL YOU DID TO MY CLOTHES, YOU PERVERTED PIECE OF HAM!"

This can't be happening. Wincing at his spectacular early morning luck, Krillin rushed to the guest room finding a scared to death Oolong and a raging 18. As soon as he entered Oolong quickly hid behind him, using him as a shield and 18 shot him such a death glare he felt himself permanently frozen to the ground.

"_You_! You're going to explain what the hell I'm doing here. NOW!" she snapped at him.

"I-I…" was the only thing Krillin was able to stammer.

As if that wasn't enough, Master Roshi suddenly walked into the room. "Hey, what is all the commotion about? Can't you see there are still people asl-"

His mouth opened wide, he could just stare at 18. "W-what is SHE doing here?" She wasn't wearing her habitual clothing. "Krillin, what did you do last night?"

Krillin went from pale to brick red quicker than a traffic light. As he turned to Master Roshi, he could feel 18's glare burning a hole in the back of his head. "What?! I-I didn't do anything! Not what you're thinking at least!"

"Then what DID you do?" 18 growled. "Where are my clothes?!"

"I-I…They're in the dryer! Bulma put them there; she was the one who changed your clothes. I swear I have nothing to do with that!" he managed to stammer.

She gave him an inspecting look, as if trying to see whether or not he was lying. Apparently she decided he was telling the truth, because she calmed down a bit. "So she was the one who put these bandages on me as well?"

"Y-yes she did. And I didn't look, I-I wasn't even in the same room!"

"Good." So none of the perverted assholes saw her naked. That was slightly relieving.

Deciding this was more then enough company she wanted to deal with, she tried to stand up. But blinding pain took over and she instinctively stretched her arm out to grab onto whatever to prevent her from falling. Unfortunately, she didn't manage to hold on to anything, and closed her eyes expecting a crash. But instead two strong arms prevented this to happen. She opened her eyes only to find herself in Krillin's arms. The monk's face quickly bypassed red and went crimson.

"I-I….I'm s-sorr…" he started to stutter.

"Release me or I'll blast you."

"I-I can't…" No, really, he couldn't. She was in pain, he could tell. Releasing her would cause her to hit the ground, since she had barely strength to keep herself in the position they were. He would have to carry her back to her bed.

"I said release me". Her voice had grown even more threatening, if that was possible.

"I-I…"

"That's it!!" she pushed her palm to his chest, but nothing happened. The mere contact caused Krillin to believe he'd die sooner of a heart attack then anything else. Obviously nothing happened and this caused 18 to fulminate him with another glare.

"What did you do?!"

"Me? I didn't do anything?!" he exclaimed. "Bulma-" But he stopped himself at once. This had to be explained to her in a calm way, when she had calmed down.

"She WHAT?!"

Despite shaking in fear, he made use of that moment of shock to put her on her bed. Looking behind him, Master Roshi and Oolong were standing there as frozen as statues. Gulping nervously for what he was about to do, he addressed them.

"G-guys, please go to the kitchen. T-there are some things to explain to 18 and to you guys."

_Next chapter preview:_

_18's reaction to it all makes Krillin more than grateful she can't blast a hole trough him. But being the only one who is (or dares) to get within a mile of her, he has to work on his confidence and the fact that 18 might not hate him as much as he thinks. _


End file.
